Caipirissima
White rum, lime and sugar muddled in the glass. The Caipirinha made with rum — cleaner and less grassy than the cachaça original, and the version most of the world outside Brazil ends up drinking.
Built to the standard modern spec; not yet tested in our kitchen. How we test.
The recipe.
Scaling adjusts quantities only. Prepare shaken drinks in individual portions.
Let’s make a good drink.
Cut half a lime into four wedges and put them in a rocks glass with the sugar.
Muddle firmly enough to release the juice and the oils from the peel, but stop before you crush the white pith.
Add the rum and fill the glass with crushed or cracked ice.
Stir from the bottom up to lift the sugar, and serve with a short straw.
A thoughtful finish
- A dry white rum keeps it closest to the cachaça original; a sweet one needs less sugar.
- Muddle the peel, not the pith — press and twist rather than grinding.
- Nothing is strained; the spent limes stay in the glass.
Common mistakes
- Lime juice instead of wedges, which loses the peel oil that makes the drink.
- Over-muddling into bitterness.
- Calling it a Caipirinha; that needs cachaça.
A few good questions.
What does a Caipiríssima taste like?
Lime, sugar and clean rum — a Caipirinha without the grassy funk, or a Daiquiri on the rocks with the peel in.
How is it different from a Daiquiri?
The whole lime is muddled with its peel, the sugar is granulated, and it is served over ice in the glass it was built in.
Aged rum?
It works, and makes a rounder, more caramel drink. White rum is the standard.
Why the name?
Brazilian wordplay: caipira plus the superlative -íssima.
Variations
- Caipirinha — The cachaça original.
- Caipiroska — Vodka in place of the spirit.
- Daiquiri — White rum, lime juice and sugar, shaken and strained.
- Ti' Punch — Rhum agricole, lime and cane syrup built in the glass.
Where it comes from
c. 1970s · Brazil / Caribbean
Contested. More than one origin is claimed for this drink. We show the competing accounts rather than pick one.
The Caipirinha is Brazil’s national drink, cachaça with lime and sugar muddled in the glass, and the Caipiríssima is what happens when the cachaça is replaced with white rum — a swap made in Cuban and Caribbean bars and in every country where rum is easy and cachaça is not. The name is a Brazilian joke, the superlative -íssima bolted onto caipira, ‘the most country drink of all’. It is not a Daiquiri: the whole lime is muddled with the peel, the sugar is granulated, and nothing is strained. Cachaça’s grassy, vegetal character is lost, and in its place is rum’s cleaner sugarcane sweetness.
Sources
- Gary Regan, The Joy of Mixology, 2003 (book)
- Difford's Guide, Caipirissima, 2010 (reference)
- IBA Official Cocktails, Caipirinha, current (standards body)
Strength. About 1.33 US standard drinks at an estimated 22% ABV, estimated from the ingredients and technique, not measured. What that means.
A little character in every sip.
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